Chapter 46

It had taken Maxi all her courage to tell him how she felt. Despite that, Riftan did not respond for a long time. When she glanced up, her eyes full of hesitation, she caught him staring at her with an intense look. He dropped his gaze to the coin resting on her bosom a second later.

She tensed, worried that he might try to take it from her again, but all he did was touch it before lowering his hand to brush one of her many bruises. To her great mortification, her stomach chose that moment to growl. Riftan's face darkened as he stroked the bruise on her side.

"I can't say I'm happy about all this, even as a lie."

Maxi recoiled. In an instant, the fire that had been burning in his eyes vanished, leaving only a cold emptiness.

"This is the second time you almost died before my eyes," he said slowly. "And now you're hungry and cold, covered in bruises in a dingy cave. I didn't want to do that with you here, of all places."